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An outline of the future 
| basis of agriculture in Montana, 
from the viewpoint of the Montana State College, 
Montana State College Extension Service, 
and Montana Agricultural Experiment 
Station 


As presented before a meeting of Montana bankers 
at Bozeman, February 2, 1924 


An Agricultural Program for Montana 


Every state in its infancy must progress slowly with its agriculture 
while developing the main factors around which the successful farm 
practice of that state must be based. The studies that have been carried 
on by the various agencies of the State College, including the Agricul- 
tural Experiment Station and the Extension Service, have, we believe, 
gained sufficient facts and experience to permit us to point out the 
essentials of agricultural success for Montana. 

It is not presumed that any fixed agricultural program for the future 
can be presented now, but we are certain that many of the important 
and fundamental facts are clear enough to be grouped together for 
presentation to the farmer and the business man at this time. 

We realize, however, that in this program only a general setting 
ean be presented, and that only parts of it will apply in all sections 
of the state. Later there will be prepared suggested programs for 
various agricultural regions of the state. Our irrigated lands permit 
a different type of agriculture from the dry-land areas, and even the 
lower and the higher irrigated valleys afford different possibilities. The 
dry-land areas also differ much in their agricultural possibilities, while 
the immense range areas, which now have passed largely into private 
ownership, present a problem all their own. It will be our purpose ‘to 
vizualize broadly the agricultural possibilities of these various regions 
of the state. 

PERMANENT FARM HOMES NECESSARY 


Since 1906 we have had too many temporary farmers who came 
to Montana to “‘get rich quick’’ on a few bumper crops and then retire 
to other states to spend the wealth which they thus proposed to gather. 
A few of these croppers-of-passage did realize their hopes, but in most 
eases the principal wealth they carried away with them was a wealth 
of experience. Farming in Montana just simply is not that kind of 
business and Montana’s agriculture will be developed only by farmers 
who farm to make and maintain permanent homes here. 


IMPORTANCE OF INDIVIDUALS 


Thrift and economy are part of the stock in trade of any farmer. 
Under any system of farm management certain individuals will fail 
to make a success where others succeed, for no program can assure 


NO05S15 


4 MONTANA EXPERIMENT STATION 


success to every individual. The ability of the individual is important 
and a program of successful agricultural methods and principles serves 
mainly as a guide to the best practices for the individual who can and 
will use them intelligently and efficiently. 


FARM PRICES IN COMPARISON 

Because farming is carried on principally for profit and because 
conditions beyond the farm itself often influence the possibility of 
profit, it is worth while to consider the relations between the prices of 
farm products and the prices of labor and supplies that enter into the 
farmer’s cost of production. The year 1913, the last year before the 
World War, is taken as an average year upon which to base comparison. 
Let the price of all commodities in 1913 represent 100. Then, com- 
pared to the 100 of that year, the prices of various commodities in 1923 
were as follows: beef cattle, 121; hogs, 81; sheep, 167; wool, 198; wheat, 
117; corn, 137; oats, 105; brick, 285; yellow pine, 229; steel, 217; ce- 
ment, 168; and skilled labor in the building trades was at 2388. 

Some point out that the farmer’s products are above the 100 mark, 
or pre-war level, but a glance at the other figures will show that the 
purchasing power or price level of agricultural products is generally 
below the Ievel of steel goods, building material, and other things which 
the farmer must buy. In other words, the buying power of most agri- 
cultural products for 1923 is well below the buying power of manu- 
factured goods and labor. This means that it takes more bushels of 
wheat to buy a wagon in 1923 than it did in 1913; more pounds of pork 
to buy a thousand feet of lumber than it took in 1913. So long as this 
buying-power difference exists between the farmer and the persons 
from whom the farmer must buy, just so long will it remain difficult 
for the farmer to purchase the things he requires or wishes with the 
things he has to sell. This is an important point in considering the 
future of agriculture in Montana, and a point that must be solvéd. 


LOW COST OPERATION 


The foregoing situation shows that it is more than ever necessary 
to carry on farm operations at a low cost. The use of larger teams to 
increase the value of man-power and the introduction of home-made 
implements where possible, are vital points. Man-power is expensive 
now and returns per man are more important than returns per acre. 


ay 


AN AGRICULTURAL PROGRAM FOR MONTANA 5 


Hight, twelve, or sixteen-horse outfits will be found an important 
means of increasing the value of man-power. 


PRODUCING THE FARM LIVING 


There is a general tendency to purchase foods that are in con- 
venient form and that have had considerable processing. The farmer 
is tempted to follow this tendency even when he may produce these 
food supplies on the farm. Purchase of these items of food supply 
greatly increases the cost of the farm living, because the costs include 
transportation, labor and expense of preparation, raw material, and 
other items. Vegetables, dairy products, meat, poultry, and eggs in 
amounts necessary for the farm table should be produced on practically 
every farm. This is a most essential point in keeping down farm costs. 


EFFICIENT MARKETING 


Out of the wide distribution of farm commodities now prevailing 
has come extensive marketing machinery with high costs for handling 
the farmer’s product. These costs, with the profits on investment and 
compensation for service, all operate to lower the price to the farmer 
and increase the price to the consumer. Service of this sort is essential 
and must be paid for; but since it has an important bearing on the 
price the farmer gets he should give careful and painstaking attention 
to the service being rendered and the price he is paying. 

In this connection there is one additional point of major importance. 
Modern carrying methods on land and sea have brought into competi- 
tion products from the four corners of the earth. The wheat growers 
of the American and Canadian west are vitally interested in the size 
and quality of the crops in Russia, Australia, South America, and India. 
In the same way the bean growers of Michigan and Montana are con- 
eerned over the crops that Japan is raising and exporting. The farm- 
er’s interest in what his competitor is producing, both at home and in 
foreign lands, is growing with every transportation improvement. 

These two features, cost of marketing and the need of world-wide 
information, point unmistakably to the need for more cooperation in 
marketing. Efforts in this direction have resulted in substantial im- 
provement in the past twenty years. However, there remains much to 
be desired if the farmer is to get his proper share of the consumer’s 
dollar. Furthermore, it is only through intelligent group action that 
reliable information on conditions may be accumulated. Individuals 
will find extensive market studies too costly to be undertaken by them 


6 MONTANA EXPERIMENT STATION 


alone, but where these may be assembled by a cooperative organization 
the cost to the individual will be relatively small. The narrow margin 
of profits and the exacting demands of the present situation should 
increase greatly the interest in cooperative marketing. 


CASH’ CROPS 


Montana always will produce crops to be raised and sold direct in 
substantial volume. Such crops as wheat, sugar beets, peas, beans, 
flax, and apples are almost sure to be important in Montana’s agricul- 
ture for many years. 


WHEAT 


In 1923 Montana’s wheat production was estimated at 53,000,000 
bushels. This was the largest crop ever harvested in the state and it 
is reasonable to expect that the production of this crop will increase 
during the coming years. The wheat belt of the country has moved 
constantly westward until all the new west has been claimed for crop- 
raising. As the cities increase in size to the east and west, the demand 
for dairy and other more intensified products tends to reduce wheat. 
production, and this crop passes on to lower-priced land and larger 
units. In the United States there is no room for further great expansion 
and the present wheat regions will continue to produce wheat unless 
wheat production moves from the United States to some other region. 

A second reason for believing that Montana will continue to be an 
important wheat state comes out of the superiority of the wheat raised 
in this state. _The experience of millers and bakers, the investigations 
on bread-making values, and the record of winnings by Montana wheat 
at grain expositions—all testify to the outstanding excellence of Mon- 
tana wheat. Even though there may be a surplus of wheat in the coun- 
try, there is no excess of Montana’s hard winter and spring sorts. 

Success in wheat-raising depends on getting the largest possible 
returns at the lowest possible cost. This crop adapts itself to the use 
of labor-saving machinery rather better than most other crops. Large 
teams and tillage implements of large capacity are essential if the 
fair degree of success, which should be possible, is to be gained. 


Sucar BEETS 
As rapidly as markets are provided through the erection of sugar 
beet factories, the acreage of this crop should be increased. Out of the 
experience of the Yellowstone Valley it is evident that both soil and 


? 


AN AGRICULTURAL PROGRAM FOR MONTANA 7 


climate favor good yields of high-quality beets and as a producer of 
cash sugar beets are of importance. 


BEANS 
Beans are becoming an important crop in some parts of the state 
and because of their quality Montana may easily build up a reputation 
in the larger markets for the beans raised. This crop is a soil improver, 
is easily handled, and fits well into an intelligently planned rotation. 
In many of the valleys of the state bean-raising is almost sure to be- 
come of higher importance. 


PEAS 

Peas do well in the higher valleys of the state. Pea-canning has 
a future in this state, and important canneries already exist. Peas of 
fine quality and flavor are produced in good yields. There also is a 
demand for Montana-grown seed peas, since the state produces vigor- 
ous seed entirely free from the pea weevil that is playing havoc in 
eastern fields. The crop has a double value in that it is a profitable 
cash producer and is a great improver of soil conditions. 


FLAX 
Flax is a crop that will continue to be of importance for a number 
of years. In eastern and northeastern Montana this crop does well 
and under a fair price level flax-raising may be expected to increase 
in the state. 


APPLES 


West of the mountains in the Bitter Root and Flathead areas 
there is sure to continue and increase as the years pass an important 
apple-raising industry.. These sections now are raising such standard 
varieties as McIntosh Red and Wealthy of a quality that surpasses 
similar seasonal varieties from other fruit areas. 


CoRN AND SILAGE 


That more than 9,000,000 bushels of corn were produced in Mon- 
tana in 1923 proves beyond discussion that a large part of the state 
is in the corn belt of the United States. The increase in acreage of 
this crop during the past ten years is most significant and furnishes 
the most substantial assurance of a diversified and permanent agri- 
eulture for Montana. The great corn crop with its tillage and feed 


8 MONTANA EXPERIMENT STATION 


possibilities insures permanent and enduring homes on the farms of 
the state. 

Montana farmers who have raised corn in the central states need 
to remember that Montana conditions require different varieties, dif- 
ferent methods of planting and tillage, and different plans for har- 
vesting from those employed in the corn-belt states. The methods 
followed and the strains developed by the Indians point the way for 
success In corn-growing in the Northwest. Of course, these methods 
and varieties have been much improved, but the corn types that best 
apply have been built up from early native strains rather than adapted 
from larger and longer-season corn-belt varieties. 

In deciding what varieties to use, the methods of harvesting to 
be employed should be kept in mind. If the crop is to be harvested 
in the field by cattle or hogs, early-maturing varieties with small ears 
produced low on the stalk should be planted. When silage is required, 
varieties with larger stalks are best; while if the corn is to be har- 
vested with the binder and threshed, the fine-stalked sorts should be 
used. 

In this connection attention should be called to the use of sun- 
flowers for silage in localities where the nights are too cool to insure 
a fair growth of corn. This crop was developed in Russia and is 
hardy to cool nights and short growing seasons. Under irrigation it 
returns a large silage yield of a quality quite equal to corn silage 
srown under similar conditions. . 

On a large percentage of grain-raising farms a certain acreage 
of corn fills a useful place. Under Montana’s conditions as to moisture 
supply there is need for moisture-conserving tillage between grain 
crops and this need can frequently be most economically met with 
corn. Up to the present bare fallow has been extensively used and no 
doubt will continue to be used to some extent, but the more varied 
income that corn makes possible contributes to the security of the 
farm unit. With proper planting methods and careful tillage, the 
moisture-conserving effects with a corn crop closely approach those 
where bare fallow has been used. 


SWEET CLOVER 


To balance the ration where corn is used there is need for some hay 
and pasture crop high in protein, and for the dry lands sweet clover 
appears to be the most promising. It withstands the drought, yields 


a 


AN AGRICULTURAL PROGRAM FOR MONTANA Y 


a satisfactory quality and a fair quantity. On the irrigated farms 
alfalfa and red clover and certain grasses furnish the hay and pasture, 
but on the dry farm sweet clover is destined to fill a highly important 
place. 


SEED PRODUCTION 

Because of the superiority of Montana-grown grain, alfalfa, and 
potato seed, a profitable market in these seed crops may be built up 
outside the state. When sold for seed, grains command a premium 
above the regular market and this offsets the freight charges for the 
long haul to the out-of-the-state regular market. 

Recent tests in southern states show that Montana-produced seed 
potatoes yield more than seed potatoes from other states. Because of 
the deterioration of seed grown under southern conditions these growers 
are looking to the Northwest for their annual supply of seed potatoes. 
Montana has a great opportunity to build up a market for her surplus 
potatoes. It is conservatively estimated that 700 carloads per year of 
Montana-produced seed potatoes eventually could be sold to southern 
2Trowers. 

Growers in the east and the middle west are willing to pay a prem- 
ium for certified Montana-grown Grimm alfalfa seed, so that the pro- 
duction of Montana seed under careful inspection is increasing each 
year. 

There is a growing tendency in eastern corn-belt states to pasture 
off corn, and there is therefore a growing demand for a low-growing 
type of corn to suit that type of feeding. Many of these states look 
to Montana for their seed corn of this type, as after the first year in 
those eastern and southern states corn goes back to high stalks and 
heavy leaves. 

In all of this seed production work growers will have to cooperate 
in producing the proper varieties and in putting the product up in 
clean, marketable condition; also in growing sufficient quantities to 
attract buyers. Even more than in regular marketing, the marketing 
of seed crops requires carefully planned and intelligently managed 
cooperation. 


A PROGRAM FOR LIVE STOCK 


BEEF CATTLE 
The old range days are gone forever in Montana—too much Mon- 
tana land is now under private ownership. Under this private owner- 


10 MONTANA EXPERIMENT STATION 


ship, even where land seems valuable for range purposes, values are 
set too high to permit efficient use by rental or lease for grazing. 


A balance must be established between winter feeding and summer 
grazing. The five months’ feed of the pastures is not enough to carry 
over large herds and the industry can not stand the heavy winter 
losses that come where there is insufficient winter feed. 


There is need for a public range land policy to put public lands 
under supervision so they can be leased for a period of years, similar 
in effect to the policy governing in the forest service leases. This will 
permit the lessee to protect his pastures from overgrazing. 

Low-priced beef and high labor make many changes necessary. We 
must produce well-bred, early-maturing cattle and get them off as 
yearlings and two-year-olds. The fat five-year-old steer is a thing of 
the past. The market now wants 900 to 1100-pound beef animals. 

Stockmen must get a bigger calf-crop percentage and must provide 
feed to keep the calf gaining through the winter months. The old 50 
per cent calf crop is too small under present conditions. To increase 
the percentage may require pasture breeding, and plans for this must 
be worked out. Again let it be remembered that winter feeding must 
prevent the heavy winter losses that the stock business can no longer 
stand in Montana. At the same time there must be greater attention 
given to live-stock diseases and to the destruction of predatory animals. 

The freight rate situation makes it necessary to ship only young 
or finished animals to market. The freight to Chicago takes half the 
value of a thin animal, while the higher-priced young or finished stuff 
takes a much lower proportion of its value for freight. In many sec- 
tions the method of finishing is to turn cattle into corn fields for two 
months in the fall before shipping. A -certain number of stockmen 
are now growing corn or contracting for grown corn as this lowers the 
labor costs. 


DAIRYING 


In spite of the natural advantages for dairying in Montana this 
industry has and no doubt will continue to develop slowly in this state. 
Dairying is a heavy and consistent labor consumer and many farmers 
still prefer to devote themselves to grain-raising for which labor-saving 
devices have been worked out, or to general stock-raising where regular 
and persistent attention is less essential than in dairying. | 

In communities where dairying is being built up. care should be 


a9 


AN AGRICULTURAL PROGRAM FOR MONTANA 1k 


exercised to see that farmers do not undertake it in a large way before 
they have had actual experience. Where cows are shipped in to be sold, 
there is much better prospect of success if the sales are confined rather 
strictly to men and districts that have had some dairying experience 
and have demonstrated fitness and willingness to follow this.line of 
work. Even in the older sections of the state where dairying is now 
thoroughly established there are many instances of failure on the part 
of inexperienced farmers who have been attracted by the success of 
those who have gone in gradually. 


SHEEP 

Since the United States does not produce enough wool and mutton 
to supply its own demand, sheep raisers are enjoying relatively satis- 
factory prices. Even though the business is profitable there are im- 
provements in methods which sheepmen may introduce. The use of 
improved sires to insure lambs of higher wool and mutton production, 
and more care at breeding time to bring about a higher percentage 
lamb crop, make for better returns and put the grower in shape to 
continue profits as the wool and mutton market adjusts itself to lower 
‘evels. 


HORSES 

The present price of horses has turned most stockmen and far- 
mers to other kinds of live-stock production, with the result that a 
shortage of good horses is almost sure to be felt in the near future. 
This would suggest that farmers will find the raising of a few colts of 
good type and quality, to replace the farm needs and also for sale, a 
good line to take up. Even though the use of mechanical power has 
gradually increased during the past few years, there will always be 
a place for large numbers of 1500 to 1800-pound horses for farm and 
city service. 


Hoes 


Local demand and western markets call for a substantial increase 
in hog production in this state. Like other kinds of live stock, hog-rais- 
ing must be handled at low costs. The present low land values make 
corn production possible at lower bushel costs than is possible in the 
central west where land values are high. The combination of corn and 
legume pastures provides for cheap pork production. 


12 MONTANA EXPERIMENT STATION 


THE PROBLEMS OF LAND SETTLEMENT 


Montana needs more people. This enormous commonwealth will 
support millions of people when its resources are properly utilized and 
it is ‘‘people’’ that the state needs most. In attracting people to the 
state, however, it is important to remember that only the settlers who 
come to the state and meet a fair degree of success are permanently an 
asset. A person who settles in Montana and fails not only returns 
little to the state but goes away with an antagonism that expresses 
itself on all occasions. 


SOIL SURVEY NEEDED 


There is, therefore, pressing need for reliable and thorough in- 
formation on the soils of the state. .A start has been made toward ac- 
cumulating this in a few of our counties and the work should be pushed 
forward vigorously. As a guide to settlers, investment companies, rail- 
way companies, and business men generally, soil survey reports are 
most valuable. 


THE FARM UNIT 


In settling the lands of the state consideration should be given to 
the proper size of the farm unit. This will vary with the condition in 
any given locality. Enough study has been made and enough expert- 
ence gained to show that the quarter or half-section dry farm is too 
small to afford a living up to a reasonable level in most sections of the 
state. One, two, or three—and in some parts of the state four-section 
farms—are none too large to permit the effective use of the equipment 
needed for low-priced production. 


SETTLERS SHOULD KNOW REQUIREMENTS 


Prospective settlers should be furnished with as reliable informa- 
tion as possible to show the actual conditions to be met.. They also 
should be told of the amount of money needed to promise a fair measure 
of suecess. Recent surveys show that many settlers have come to the 
state and attempted to become farm owners without having enough 
money to get together the necessary equipment or to carry them through 
the first year until crops can be harvested. This absence of capital 
predicts failure in most cases and the need of money for initial expense 
should be fully stated. 

Finally, it should be borne in mind that if farming is to attract 
and hold the grade of intelligence essential for success, it must afford 


ey 


<s 


AN AGRICULTURAL PROGRAM FOR MONTANA 13 


fair returns on the money and effort invested. Furthermore, farm 
life must make possible as great community contacts and satisfactions 
as are available to the family in town. This does not mean that they 
will be the same as those in town, but agricultural community life must 
prove attractive if farming is to hold its place. 

Community cooperation for collecting essential business informa- 
tion, marketing of farm products, and assurance of social contacts— 
these are vital to successful agriculture. To a greater extent than in 
any other line of work, farming is a mode of life as well as a means of 
making a living. 

Through this discussion there has been little mention of diversifi- 
cation as a necessary element of farm success in Montana, yet the sub- 
jects discussed and the emphasis placed upon various points will indi- 
cate our belief in the neccessity of diversification to as great an extent 
as is possible under varying local conditions. 


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